BOOK REPORT: Wiglington and Wenks- The Legacy

This book is called, ‘WIGLINGTON AND WENKS- THE LEGACY’ written by John Bittleston. It is about two water rats called Wiglington and Wenks. They get swept away across the English Channel in a storm and arrive in Paris. The two decide to stay for a little while. It is in Paris that their adventures start. Wiglington makes a few calls to get a tour guide for the Louvre. He is called Nude Castle (another water rat). Nude Castle and his friend, Filorat, tell Wiglington and Wenks that they may be linked to the famous map maker- Carto Wiglington who accompanied Marco Polo on his voyages! So, with this information and a few headstarts from their water rat friends, Wiglington and Wenks start their journey to find these precious maps. Wait, it’s not that easy though. Filorat and Nude Castle warn the couple that a pack of Fruit Bats are also very eager to get their hands on the maps and their leader can be very cunning. Wiglington and Wenks go further down in Paris and don’t notice that Fruba, the leader of the Fruit Bats, is following them. They get kidnapped but fool the witless bats and escape. Filorat provides them the necessary document they need to claim the first map and the couple don’t stop till they get it. Tired but restless, determined to claim the maps, the two very intelligent water rats escape from enemies and get their first map. Though they are happy, they decide to wait for sometime before venturing off on their second journey through time. Nothing could go wrong just for a little while, right? “Oh,” said Wenks, “there is no hurry about that. We’ve got one map. Let’s just have a rest for a while. Plenty of time to go to Venice later. We’ll enjoy Christmas here first, I think.”

What I like about this book:

• I was glad to see that rodents were looked upon as good people like friends. Sometimes, some authors depict rodents or rats as filthy and disgusting but in this book, they didn’t.
• I think Fruba was the main villain but though he was really bad, I still do think he had a good side because he made the story so action-packed and interesting! I can’t wait till I get the second book in the series: The Chase. It continues in Venice and Rome and I’m sure that’s going to be full of suspense too.
• While reading this book, I learnt to not be over confident as Fruba, the leader of the Fruit Bats, was because in the end, it only turns out to be disastrous. This is portrayed in Fruba because he thinks he and his pack will be able to get the map because they have so many abilities. But, his pack aren’t strong enough to fight and Fruba has to do everything independently.
• Finally… Fun time! Read the book and answer these questions:

1. Who is the other guide that helps them in the library?
2. What species is this guide (eg. human, rodent, animals)?
3. Where does Filorat live?
4. How does Wiglington thank Filorat and Nude Castle?

Just one last remark before I leave you to read the book; I got the book signed by John Bittleston as this first story is a gift from him after my mum went to meet him personally.

I WOULD GIVE THIS BOOK AN 8 OUT OF 10 RATING!

FIND OUT WHAT I MEAN BY READING, ‘WIGLINGTON AND WENKS- THE LEGACY’!

YOU CAN BUY IT HERE ON AMAZON FOR $1.98!

Book Report: HALF A CHANCE

This book is called, ‘HALF A CHANCE’, written by Cynthia Lord. It is about a girl named Lucy who loves photography. Lucy and her family move to a new house and Lucy tries to take as many pictures of her new house as she can. Her father is a photographer too who goes on many trips to take pictures. Lucy has inherited her father’s love of photography. One day, while collecting a few files for her father, she learns that he is judging a competition and really wants to join. At first, Lucy is hurt because her father didn’t tell her but, she is determined to show her father what she is capable of. There’s one problem though: since Lucy is the daughter of one of the judges, it may seem unfair for her to take pictures because if she wins, people may think it’s her father being lenient. This must have been the reason Lucy is not informed about the competition. So, Lucy takes the help of her new friend, Nate, in order to enter. She uses his name as the participant’s name (with his permission). First, Lucy is only eager to show her father what she can do and possibly win some money to spend on her friends and family. Then, Nate gives her an even bigger reason to enter for the competition: Nate’s grandma wants to hire a boat and sail on the lake once again. Ever since Lucy moved into her new house, Nate and his family have always tried to make her feel at home. Nate becomes quite special to Lucy and she becomes jealous of Nate’s other friend, Megan. In the competition, Lucy has to take many pictures under some topics stated on a paper. For example, there is a category called, ‘Not Yet’ and Lucy has to take a picture of something which she feels means, ‘Not Yet’. Together, Nate and Lucy have fun taking pictures. Their friendship grows stronger and stronger and apart from photography, the two go kayaking in the lake where adorable loons (birds) are found. They put up posters to raise awareness of the baby loons. Meanwhile, Lucy’s father is well away from the situation and thinks Nate is the participant. After finishing all the photos, Lucy’s father judges the competition and Lucy (who is acting as Nate) is a runner up! In the end, Lucy decides to tell the truth and admits that she was the photographer. Her father is quite impressed because of her work, shocked because she was so insistant and worried that Lucy’s hard work would go waste if the other judges disqualified her. However, everything goes well and Lucy and Nate finally get to take Nate’s Grandmother on a boat trip on the lake. Suddenly, Nate goes back home for a while and Lucy is alone with Megan. The two then become great friends and share Nate evenly. Click, click! Lucy the photographer shines through!

What I like about this book:

• I really like that this book is about photography because it is a very unique topic. I haven’t heard of or read many books which are mostly based on, ‘Photography’. I wonder how Cynthia Lord got the idea of this theme for the book? Perhaps, she was a photography enthusiast.
• I really like that Lucy is very passionate about photography and has  the confidence to know that she is good and she can improve although her father never tells her so.
• At the end of the book, there is a slight twist. Nate gets angry with Lucy because she uses a picture he doesn’t want her to use. When the author describes the picture earlier in the book, I felt like I was there, taking the picture and seeing Nate’s grandmother looked fearful and gripping a cup. This picture repeats itself in my brain whenever I think of photography and I hope if and when you read the book, you can picture the photo too.
• When I read the book, I learnt two very good lessons. The first one was to actually embrace people’s talents and to encourage them. I felt as if Lucy’s father was being a little disparaging towards Lucy by not taking much notice of her talent. The second lesson was to share things- such as money-generously. This is portrayed best in Lucy who is willing to use the money on Nate’s grandmother though it is her money that she has earned.
• Finally.. Fun time! Read the book and answer these questions:

1.    What is Nate’s sister’s name?

2.   What is Nate’s dad’s profession?

3.   Do Nate and Lucy ever do anything alone just together? What?

4.   What mountain do they climb?

5.   Which three places are the posters put up?

I WOULD GIVE THIS BOOK A 8 OUT OF 10 RATING!

FIND OUT WHAT I MEAN BY READING, ‘HALF A CHANCE’!

YOU CAN BUY IT HERE ON AMAZON FOR $5.85!

Book Report: ONE DOG AND HIS BOY

This book is called, ‘ONE DOG AND HIS BOY’ written by Eva Ibbotson. It is about a boy named Hal who loves dogs. All Hal ever wanted in his life was a dog but his mother can’t stand the thought of a, ‘filthy creature’ messing her spotless house up. On Hal’s birthday, he gets a dog but doesn’t know that it’s only for the weekend. His father had assumed that Hal would get tired of the responsibility it takes to own a dog. But, Hal doesn’t. So when Hal doesn’t see Fleck (his dog) when he returns from a dentist appointment, he’s heartbroken. Figuring out that his no-good parents are behind the disappearance of Fleck, he decides to get Fleck back and run away to his grandparent’s house. When he goes back to the Dog Rental and frees Fleck, he becomes friends with the cleaner’s younger sister, Pippa, who then frees the remaining five dogs dogs and joins Hal on his journey. They start at the train station and run away. As predicted, Hal’s parents get worried and send a professional detective to find them. Since they are rich, they also put up a poster to inform citizens that Hal is missing with a big reward guaranteed for anyone who finds him. Hal, Pippa, Fleck and the five other dogs encounter many dangers along the way. One of my favourite is when Hal and Fleck almost get kidnapped but smart Pippa and the five other dogs use their skills to free them. The eight travel a long way, and along the way, each of the five dogs from the rental find their true and kind, owner. When Hal, Pippa, Fleck and one last dog (whose owner is Pippa) reach Hal’s grandparents’ house, Hal gets to stay there for a few days while Pippa goes back home with her parents. Hal’s parents then come to take Hal back home and agree to keep Fleck. Hal goes back to his colossal house after a few days. All the dogs have found their true owners and now bark happily ever after.

What I like about this book:

• This book is very touching. Although dogs aren’t my favorite, I started thinking about what animals and pets have to go through. Is their life like this? Hopeless, sad, relying on cruel people for help? If you are a dog-lover, I highly recommend this book for you. Even cat-lovers (like me) will like it. This book is joyful, sad and altogether very engaging and inspiring.
• I learnt a deep lesson while reading this book. It’s ‘not to judge a book by its cover’. This is portrayed best in two parts of the story. The first part is when Hal’s mother judges Fleck as a dirty, filthy creature while Fleck hardly messes the house at all. Secondly, Hal’s mother and father are both not fond of Hal’s grandparents as they live by the sea in a very small and smimple cottage and think that they would bring their reputation down.
• It appears to me that Eva Ibbotson became quite passionate about dogs or how dogs were treated, a little while after she realised what her friendly puppy was to her. I find this very interesting and inspiring because she does what she thinks is right and stands up for what she believes in.
• While the story was a touching and inspiring one, I found the plot quite simple and similar to some other Dog stories I have read. The storytelling was engaging but I was still looking for something that could really add to the action in the book.

I WOULD RATE THIS BOOK 7 OUT OF 10 RATING!

FIND OUT WHAT I MEAN BY READING, ‘ONE DOG AND HIS BOY’!

YOU CAN BUY IT HERE ON AMAZON FOR $7.99!

YOU CAN BUY IT HERE ON GUARDIAN BOOKSHOP FOR £5.73!

Book Report: ADVENTURE ACCORDING TO HUMPHREY

This book is called ‘ADVENTURE ACCORDING TO HUMPHREY’, written by Betty.G. Birney. Humphrey is a hamster who goes on many different adventures.(You can see the two other reports on my blog). Humphrey is a class pet who is adored by all the kids. Mrs. Brisbane (the teacher of that class) talks about a project in which the students have to create a ship and in the end, there is a race. A trip to the library is needed in order to collect information for building the ships. Humphrey is intrigued by the number of books in the library and starts to sneak into the library late at night. Every night, a video plays when he accidentally taps a button on a remote. Humphrey has many things to worry about everyday such as problems between classmates and family. For example: Kirk and Richie (two classmates) get into a fight in which Kirk gets left out and decides to take revenge. He builds his own ship at home and uses that for the race to show Richie what he is capable of. Later, Humphrey finds a family problem and tries to solve it; Gail and her partner (two other students) have many different ideas. While Gail wants a plain flag on her ship, her partner is against her and Gail’s mum is unfortunately supporting Gail’s partner! When at night Humphrey meets up with his old pal, Aldo the cleaner, Aldo starts acting and speaking like a pirate. Humphrey worries that Aldo might actually turn into one and his spine shivers. On the day of the race, Humphrey tries to stop Kirk from destroying Richie’s boat by going aboard Richie’s boat. But, the damage is done but Humphrey finds a way to save himself. In the end, Gail’s idea is finally used on Gail’s ship. Kirk and Richie apologise for being so competitive and in doing so, get together again. Ahoy! Me hearties. What was that? Then, it hits Humphrey why Aldo was acting like a pirate; to practice for entertaining the parents and children at the race! In the end, all is resolved happily and Humphrey once again, saves the class!

What I like about this book:

• On his way to help and save his friends, Humphrey makes new ones and treasures them. This is one thing that I really like because I feel that a friend is like a precious gem that all of us should treasure. However, not all of us do (including me). He dedicates himself to helping people even when he might get hurt doing so e.g. by going on Richie’s ship when water is bad for his fur.
• All of his friends represent an event in Humphrey’ life or someone who Humphrey has helped. For example, Aldo is someone who Humphrey is very close to and helps him again and again with big decisions and Og the Frog marks the time when Humphrey got over his jealousy and made friends with even the most odd creature.
• All of Humphrey’s books are funny but also have a lesson or meaning to them that all of us should use in life. There are two very good lessons in this book. The first one is not to be over confident and competitive as Kirk and Richie both were when they were building their ship. The second one is to be welcoming and to not be disparaging.
• A feeling of deja vu came over me when I read the part about Aldo acting like a pirate and Humphrey felt scared. Some friends I had have recently changed their ways and are just a bit more mature and have their own ways. I guess it’s all about growing up- I can notice changes in myself too.
• Finally.. Fun time! Read the book and answer these questions:

1.    What is the name of Gail’s partner?

2.   What is the name of the librarian?

3.   Which book does Mrs. Brisbane read to the class?

4.   Who hosts the field trip to the pond?

5.   What is the pond called?

6.   How does Kirk control his submarine?

7.   How does Humphrey save himself?

8.   How many parents become pirates for the field trip? Who are they?

Although the book is really good, I do think a few twists and turns in the story would engage the reader even more and overall, would make the book very interesting.

I WOULD GIVE THIS BOOK A 9 OUT OF 10 RATING!

FIND OUT WHAT I MEAN BY READING ADVENTURE ACCORDING TO HUMPHREY!

YOU CAN BUY IT HERE ON AMAZON FOR $5.99!

YOU CAN BUY IT HERE ON GUARDIAN BOOKSHOP FOR £4.79!